Poem: Smoke and Mirrors
Smoke and Mirrors
When did I lose my self?
Disappearing in front of a mirror called ‘needs’…
Recognition;
Approval;
Isn’t that all anyone wants?
One flash and this life began,
Bathed in a pool of warm, golden nectar.
Only to dissolve into the stream
Of false reality.
Sinking into the culture of…
Ambition;
Success;
Drive-thru solutions.
Where’s my reality show?
Smoke and Mirrors-
We believe what we see
And what we want to believe.
The mind’s eye is a fickle fiend.
It compliments and we complacently agree;
Urged on by Ego-the master manipulator.
This Princess was doomed
To sleep for thousands of years.
But, in this Fairy Tale
Divine Grace sent Truth to break the spell.
In the Awakening, Clarity dispelled
Smoke and Mirrors.
Written by Denise Handlon
April 8, 2010 Revised and completed November 3, 2011
No portion of this work may be used or copied in any way without the expressed written permission of this author.
The making of this poem:
Many of my poetry ideas begin as a thought during my meditation practice; which usually intensifies during retreats. Since I attend a spiritual retreat several times a year my meditation practice builds, thus the contemplation of ‘what is’ develops as well.
This poem was actually written over a year ago, in April of 2010. The original poem sat unused and a bit choppy. It seemed to lack the flow of direction that I normally have. Today when I picked it up I began to shuffle things around, edit and even drop sentences. To actually drop a sentence of a line of poetry was a huge exercise for me in letting go . This is a good thing, since my spiritual path is also about questioning what one is attached to-poetry included!
During the course of the revision I was interrupted by a phone call from my sister. It’s always a pleasure to chat with her, although I realized it was a form of distraction from the exercise of wrestling with the poem. Surprisingly, when I sat down to my computer later, I immediately fell into a different direction all together finding my fingers flying across the keyboard.
In the first version, it had an old, ancient feeling which did not resonate with what I was attempting to say. Although the words failed to present themselves to me in April of last year, in the pause between the revisions a fresh angle came through-words and all, and I realized the missing piece was a bridge into the modern world of this century. So, words like: ‘drive-thru’, and ‘reality show ’ popped into the piece, while maintaining the underlying sense of the mystical, magical ancient days of old.
The other point I would like to make is the actual form. I’ve been very aware, when writing poetry, of the ‘shape’ of the stanzas that it may take. It doesn’t seem to be difficult for me notice early on the pattern that emerges with the lines. For instance, in this poem there are two stanzas that mimic each other with three ‘one word’ sentences followed by a question. Then, it goes into a new pattern of focusing on the ‘Smoke and Mirrors’.
In conclusion-we are all victims of 'Smoke and Mirrors' because of our own humanity. Final version: November 3, 2011.